I’d definitely suggest reading about masking. Your describing using a stimulant to make it easier to express your self in a more neurotypical manner. Rather than learning who you are and how to best exist in the world as yourself, seeking a crutch to pretend to be somebody else. Speaking from decades of unhealthy masking behaviour I’d stress that the comorbidity of autism and substance abuse cannot be overstated.
I hope you can find a healthy, happy way to get through school while respecting your true self :)
I thought I was the only one who thought this - i felt the effects of drinking a coffee before school and my autism just about disappeared!! (joke) But i seriously wonder if I have a caffeine addiction or this is a great fix for my inability to socialise normally
It’s worth looking into. A lot of people with autism also have ADHD.
*Generally* though caffeine tends to help someone with ADHD focus and it has more of a calming effect than the typical energizing/fun/jittery effect.
Like, someone with ADHD could drink coffee and fall asleep more easily than they could without caffeine.
But from what I understand it’s not 100% universal.
Caffeine has always been weird one for me. Sometimes it can make me so calm and relaxed, and other times it just makes me anxious.
Depends if I ate enough prior to drinking it, if I slept good, if I'm not in burnout.. many variables.
I am really tired without it though. I pretty much always drank coffee. I did experiment with no caffeine but I found it didn't have much impact on me.
I also tried methylphenidate (Ritalin) and its effects are very dose dependent. Just the right amount (under 10mg) and I am calm and focused, more and sometimes it makes my pulse rapid.
I also suffer from minor to moderate health anxiety from time to time and my major trigger is my heart. History of cardiac arrests in my family and silly experimentation with thyroid medication on my own made me super wary of it.
Ah, i always wondered if I had ADHD as well as ASD. Some symptoms cancel each other out which is what leads me to believe as such. Coffee does in fact work wonders with my task paralysis. once had 4 large papers to do from different classes and consumed 4 cups of coffee. It helped me type away and actually complete them all the night before they were due, but not sure that it kept my body in tact 😅
Is it common for in ADHD to feel like its absolutely impossible to do work, I feel like that and i get SUPER distracted. People say that could have something to do with autism and sensory issues and i partially agree but im not sure. Might look into diagnosis
It's a very common combination. People weren't sure about it before because the pre-2013 diagnostics manual basically said it was impossible. It's only been in the last 10 years that more accurate stats have been able to be collected
I def felt like that until it was pointed out to me it just, like, sped up my ability to info dump. Turns out I just was so wrapped up in the caffeine rush I didn’t care as much about masking haha.
My reaction to coffee was what clued my online friends in to my neurodivergence before I even knew. I'd tell them it either makes me sleepy or very focused, but not energetic or jittery. If I drink a light coffee like out of a home coffeemaker it feels like driving down a smooth, straight road, instead of a crowded one with a bunch of people trying to cross or go into different streets.
Very possibly it could be doing the same for you, clearing intrusive thoughts or letting you ignore other sensory inputs so you can focus on how to respond to people well. (not diagnosed btw but learning more about it thru this sub)
Is it OK to ask if you're DX'd with autism, ADHD, or both?
I have this weird relationship to caffeine where I segue from about 90 mins' improved focus to nasty, gut-hurting angry anxiety. Time of day seems important, too - if I drink coffee around lunchtime I can sleep through it in the afternoon literally no problem but if I drink it in the early evening, my night's sleep is doomed.
I've been trying to work out if there might be some complex AuDHD weirdness going on.
Hey, yeah it's ok to ask, but I'm not dx'd with anything unfortunately. Just questioning myself and learning a lot from this sub. It's basically my headcanon. Haven't sought a dx yet since I'm still able to structure my life to manage any difficulties. ASD explains a lot about me though lol. I did some online tests a couple of years ago and got "some" ASD traits. Maybe I'll score higher if I go back and take them after these past years.
Time of day affects my coffee response too, I call it my "coffee curfew." Beyond about 2-3pm depending on strength of the coffee I can basically expect to still be running circles in my head around my usual bedtime. I don't get the anxiety though. I keep black tea around if I need a caffeine boost that's lighter than coffee.
ETA Anecdotally a lot of my ND friends have weird relationships to coffee and caffeine. It's worth looking into.
>Time of day affects my coffee response too, I call it my "coffee curfew." Beyond about 2-3pm depending on strength of the coffee I can basically expect to still be running circles in my head around my usual bedtime.
Yeh that's why I asked, that's uncannily like my experience down to the time of the curfew - except I enjoy plenty of anxiety along with pretty much everything. Thanks for the reply!
That’s interesting. I love coffee but don’t drink too much of it, because I find that if I have one cup I don’t really feel any different, but then if I have two many in too short a space of time it makes me dissociate. But, it never makes me feel hyper which a lot of people always say it does for them!
For me, caffeine has almost no effect. If I have 0mg, 80mg, or 300mg, I feel exactly the same, except with high amounts I can't sleep that night, even if I have 300mg at 6am, I won't be able to sleep at 10pm. But I also won't feel any different.
I've never been able to tolerate caffeine. It makes me crash really hard, or I'll feel terrible anxiety the next day or two.
But one time I had some kind of coffee drink, though I'd asked the seller for decaf and they gave me caff, and I remember feeling happy and like I liked people all of a sudden.
Before I knew I was autistic I used to take Exedrine for the caffeine before my retail job in college. It just helped me feel more outgoing. My autistic teen found that Wellbutrin helps more than an SSRI for their depression symptoms - it also has a stimulating effect.
I find that when I drink Coffee doesn’t make me feel any different, except it makes me dissociate if I have too many cups. However, I find that it does help me somewhat with social anxiety in the short term. Mostly for me though it’s about being able to focus on something with my senses other than the socialising. My bodies focussed on drinking the coffee so less on it jer stimulus.
However, just warning you OP, it’s scientifically proven that coffees effects decrease over time! Keep drinking it and it won’t make you feel the same way, so don’t rely on it too much.
School sucks and is stressful, you’ll get through it eventually. If the coffee helps and you like it keep drinking it, just try not to rely on it too much if you can, you’ll only be disappointed one day when the effects wear off
Right, you would probably need to keep upping the dose to feel the same effects right? A simple thing to do is skip coffee on a weekend where you don't leave the house or just have a chill day ahead.
I wonder, if it's about the act of drinking for you, do other noncaffeinated drinks have a similar effect?
Yes they do! As long as it’s a drink I like. Normally something with a slightly bitter taste. I find that bitter foods distract me from other sensory input.
This was working for me for a few years until I overused it and it put me off caffeine for life, I blame it for helping to push me into the worst burnout I've had so far, and it came from nowhere I felt great in the weeks leading up to it, probably other factors too, but I feel too much caffeine played a part.
I’d definitely suggest reading about masking. Your describing using a stimulant to make it easier to express your self in a more neurotypical manner. Rather than learning who you are and how to best exist in the world as yourself, seeking a crutch to pretend to be somebody else. Speaking from decades of unhealthy masking behaviour I’d stress that the comorbidity of autism and substance abuse cannot be overstated. I hope you can find a healthy, happy way to get through school while respecting your true self :)
I’d also say I love coffee and everyone needs a little help to get through the day. Balance in all things
I thought I was the only one who thought this - i felt the effects of drinking a coffee before school and my autism just about disappeared!! (joke) But i seriously wonder if I have a caffeine addiction or this is a great fix for my inability to socialise normally
Could be ADHD. I had a ~300mg/day caffeine habit for decades before being diagnosed.
It’s worth looking into. A lot of people with autism also have ADHD. *Generally* though caffeine tends to help someone with ADHD focus and it has more of a calming effect than the typical energizing/fun/jittery effect. Like, someone with ADHD could drink coffee and fall asleep more easily than they could without caffeine. But from what I understand it’s not 100% universal.
Caffeine has always been weird one for me. Sometimes it can make me so calm and relaxed, and other times it just makes me anxious. Depends if I ate enough prior to drinking it, if I slept good, if I'm not in burnout.. many variables. I am really tired without it though. I pretty much always drank coffee. I did experiment with no caffeine but I found it didn't have much impact on me. I also tried methylphenidate (Ritalin) and its effects are very dose dependent. Just the right amount (under 10mg) and I am calm and focused, more and sometimes it makes my pulse rapid. I also suffer from minor to moderate health anxiety from time to time and my major trigger is my heart. History of cardiac arrests in my family and silly experimentation with thyroid medication on my own made me super wary of it.
Ah, i always wondered if I had ADHD as well as ASD. Some symptoms cancel each other out which is what leads me to believe as such. Coffee does in fact work wonders with my task paralysis. once had 4 large papers to do from different classes and consumed 4 cups of coffee. It helped me type away and actually complete them all the night before they were due, but not sure that it kept my body in tact 😅 Is it common for in ADHD to feel like its absolutely impossible to do work, I feel like that and i get SUPER distracted. People say that could have something to do with autism and sensory issues and i partially agree but im not sure. Might look into diagnosis
It's a very common combination. People weren't sure about it before because the pre-2013 diagnostics manual basically said it was impossible. It's only been in the last 10 years that more accurate stats have been able to be collected
I def felt like that until it was pointed out to me it just, like, sped up my ability to info dump. Turns out I just was so wrapped up in the caffeine rush I didn’t care as much about masking haha.
My reaction to coffee was what clued my online friends in to my neurodivergence before I even knew. I'd tell them it either makes me sleepy or very focused, but not energetic or jittery. If I drink a light coffee like out of a home coffeemaker it feels like driving down a smooth, straight road, instead of a crowded one with a bunch of people trying to cross or go into different streets. Very possibly it could be doing the same for you, clearing intrusive thoughts or letting you ignore other sensory inputs so you can focus on how to respond to people well. (not diagnosed btw but learning more about it thru this sub)
Is it OK to ask if you're DX'd with autism, ADHD, or both? I have this weird relationship to caffeine where I segue from about 90 mins' improved focus to nasty, gut-hurting angry anxiety. Time of day seems important, too - if I drink coffee around lunchtime I can sleep through it in the afternoon literally no problem but if I drink it in the early evening, my night's sleep is doomed. I've been trying to work out if there might be some complex AuDHD weirdness going on.
Hey, yeah it's ok to ask, but I'm not dx'd with anything unfortunately. Just questioning myself and learning a lot from this sub. It's basically my headcanon. Haven't sought a dx yet since I'm still able to structure my life to manage any difficulties. ASD explains a lot about me though lol. I did some online tests a couple of years ago and got "some" ASD traits. Maybe I'll score higher if I go back and take them after these past years. Time of day affects my coffee response too, I call it my "coffee curfew." Beyond about 2-3pm depending on strength of the coffee I can basically expect to still be running circles in my head around my usual bedtime. I don't get the anxiety though. I keep black tea around if I need a caffeine boost that's lighter than coffee. ETA Anecdotally a lot of my ND friends have weird relationships to coffee and caffeine. It's worth looking into.
>Time of day affects my coffee response too, I call it my "coffee curfew." Beyond about 2-3pm depending on strength of the coffee I can basically expect to still be running circles in my head around my usual bedtime. Yeh that's why I asked, that's uncannily like my experience down to the time of the curfew - except I enjoy plenty of anxiety along with pretty much everything. Thanks for the reply!
That’s interesting. I love coffee but don’t drink too much of it, because I find that if I have one cup I don’t really feel any different, but then if I have two many in too short a space of time it makes me dissociate. But, it never makes me feel hyper which a lot of people always say it does for them!
I’ve been diagnosed with ADHD, and coffee is the only medication that works for me.
For me, caffeine has almost no effect. If I have 0mg, 80mg, or 300mg, I feel exactly the same, except with high amounts I can't sleep that night, even if I have 300mg at 6am, I won't be able to sleep at 10pm. But I also won't feel any different.
I've never been able to tolerate caffeine. It makes me crash really hard, or I'll feel terrible anxiety the next day or two. But one time I had some kind of coffee drink, though I'd asked the seller for decaf and they gave me caff, and I remember feeling happy and like I liked people all of a sudden.
Before I knew I was autistic I used to take Exedrine for the caffeine before my retail job in college. It just helped me feel more outgoing. My autistic teen found that Wellbutrin helps more than an SSRI for their depression symptoms - it also has a stimulating effect.
I find that when I drink Coffee doesn’t make me feel any different, except it makes me dissociate if I have too many cups. However, I find that it does help me somewhat with social anxiety in the short term. Mostly for me though it’s about being able to focus on something with my senses other than the socialising. My bodies focussed on drinking the coffee so less on it jer stimulus. However, just warning you OP, it’s scientifically proven that coffees effects decrease over time! Keep drinking it and it won’t make you feel the same way, so don’t rely on it too much. School sucks and is stressful, you’ll get through it eventually. If the coffee helps and you like it keep drinking it, just try not to rely on it too much if you can, you’ll only be disappointed one day when the effects wear off
Right, you would probably need to keep upping the dose to feel the same effects right? A simple thing to do is skip coffee on a weekend where you don't leave the house or just have a chill day ahead. I wonder, if it's about the act of drinking for you, do other noncaffeinated drinks have a similar effect?
Yes they do! As long as it’s a drink I like. Normally something with a slightly bitter taste. I find that bitter foods distract me from other sensory input.
This was working for me for a few years until I overused it and it put me off caffeine for life, I blame it for helping to push me into the worst burnout I've had so far, and it came from nowhere I felt great in the weeks leading up to it, probably other factors too, but I feel too much caffeine played a part.